Basket weaving is perhaps the oldest craft known by human civilization. In Africa, the skill and art of weaving basket was passed on from generation to generation by a master basket weaver assigned in each community. The master weaver is capable of making different sorts of baskets.
There are different types of basket weaving. You call it coiled basketry if it uses grasses and rushes, plaiting if it utilizes wide and ribbon-like materials like palms and yucca; twining if the materials that are cross weaved are from roots and tree bark; and baskets are called wicker and splint if made of materials from reed, cane, willow, oak and ash.
There are three things you need to look for in choosing a basket. These are function, size, and weight. In order to carry objects effectively with a basket, these three factors must complement. To check, inspect the base, side wall, and rim of the basket. If you are using the basket to pick up cherries, its side walls must be tightly woven so that cherries will not fall out of the holes. If you are going to use a basket to carry logs, the rim and base should be strong enough to contain the logs. This is held with both arms because a single handle will be good only for lightweight materials.
African baskets are made of materials like bard, grass, seeds, agave plant, reeds, and raffia. To produce a colorful hand woven basket, dye is extracted from a variety of plants like aloe for coral, the marula tree bark for burgundy and maroon, while yellow comes from a mixture of wood ash and water. Africans also boil plants to get colors orange and khaki.
Some African baskets represent symbolisms for the female and male. Diamond represents femininity. Thus, if the basket is decorated with a double diamond, it means “married woman”. Masculinity is represented by a single triangle. Thus, a double triangle denotes “married man”.
Large needles are used to stitch contemporary African baskets. Most basket makers display their skill in presenting a basket without any irregularities in the pattern. You won’t find any overlaps or errors inside nor outside the basket.